of values. By achieving insight into absolute values we become
capable of leading a moral life. Regarding the absolute values, the
only dependable source of knowledge is Divine Revelation.
Through intense reflection on Revelation, we can hope to
understand the meaning and purpose of creation, the worth of the
human self and its possibilities and destiny. We would do well to lay
the following soul-stirring verse to heart:
Lo! In the creation of the heavens and the earth, and in the alternation
of night and day, are surely signs to men of understanding. Such as
keep before their mind the Laws of Allah, standing and sitting and
reclining, and reflect on the creation of the heaven and the earth,
saying; Our Rabb! Thou hast not created this in vain (3:189-190).
Wahi (Revelation) illumines our path in the realm of values.
However, we cannot understand Wahi only by faith, nor through
reason alone. What is needed for this purpose is a happy blend of
the two. Reason wedded to faith leads us to the inner spirit of the
Revelation. The Qur'an speaks of men who have grasped the
meaning of the Wahi, as ''men of real understanding" (5:100). They
are the true believers because irrational belief has no value (65:10).
So far as the Qur'an is concerned, there can be no real conflict
between Eiman and reason. It speaks of those who believe as
"having both knowledge and Eiman" (30:56). They are the twin stars
that enlighten the path of man. In the West, however, conflict
between faith and reason is a strand that runs through history. The
warfare between science and religion (the title of White's famous
book) ran its sanguinary course through several centuries. Only
recently the truth has dawned on the Western people that reason
and faith, far from being antithetical, need, as well as sustain, each
other. Locke has made this point clear:
He that takes away reason to make way for revelation, puts out the light
of both.(16)
This is essentially the Qur'anic view proclaimed in many a verse
and reinforced by the clear pronouncements of the Nabi. It should
be clear by now that it is not the purpose of Revelation to stifle
reason and encourage blind faith to supplant it. The Qur'an
nowhere glorifies blind faith. Far from decrying reason, knowledge
and experience, the Qur'an insists on our making full use of our
intellectual faculties to understand and appreciate the ultimate truth
conveyed through Wahi. The Wahi helps reason to reach maturity.
Islam: A Challenge to Religion 136